Patent Chief Denies Tribunal Appeal Claiming Abuse of Discretion

US Patent and Trademark Office Acting Director Coke Morgan Stewart rejected a semiconductor company’s request to undo a recent order permitting discovery into its relationship with Intel Corp., a decision the company argued invites gamesmanship and may promote “director shopping.”

Stewart denied Semiconductor Components Industries LLC’s rehearing request and upheld her April order that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board erred in denying patent owner Greenthread LLC’s discovery request, according to a decision issued May 22, with no explanation.

• Stewart’s April order vacated the board’s decision invalidating Greenthread’s US Patent No. 10,510,842 and ordered discovery.
• In 2024, then-Deputy Director ...